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British Drivers 'take three months to get vehicle faults checked'

22nd September 2015

Over 50% of British drivers take three months to get problems with their vehicles checked.

The worrying results come from a survey conducted by BookMyGarage.com, who found that more than 1,000 Britons are putting themselves in danger by not getting problems with their vehicles checked until 3 months after the problem began.

BookMyGarage.com highlight that by putting off vehicle repair, drivers are risking higher repair costs when they inevitably have to get the issue fixed.

Even more shockingly, the survey found that 21% of people wait 6 months or more before getting problems checked, and 12% will drive a faulty vehicle for up to a year.

"The data suggests that more than 1 in 2 cars currently being driven on UK roads have some sort of problem which hasn't been looked over by a professional - and, worse, many will wait more than three months before having it checked out," says Karen Rotberg, director at BookMyGarage.com.

Most of the problems that are initially ignored by drivers are often inexpensive to repair, and the cost to their wallet to repair the issue immediately is a lot less than than the cost of putting their family and themselves in danger by letting the issue persist.

The survey revealed that the most commonly ignored problem is an illuminated engine management light, which can cost as little as £25 to replace, but ignoring the problem can worsen the damage meaning a future repair could cost up to £1500!

The second most ignored problem is a worn wheel bearing, which can cost under £100 to replace if dealt with immediately, but if ignored, later repair can be up to £1500.

35-44 year olds were found to be the most likely to drive with a fault, with 47% confessing to do so, followed by 45-54 year olds - suggesting drivers are more likely to ignore faults as they become more experienced.

So pop along to your local HiQ to give your car a check over and get you back on the road in no time!